1932 Bergholt stars at Hershey auction

A 1932 Bergholt Streamline sedan should be one of the star attractions when it comes on the block Oct. 8 at RM Auctions’ two-day event at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, PA. 

Now, if you’re trying to remember when you last saw one of these Bergholts at a Long Island car show, don’t bother. The sedan is a one-of-a-kind vehicle built atop 1932 Ford underpinnings at the direction of a Minneapolis cosmetics manufacturer. 

What makes the Bergholt so unusual is that its slab-sided, aerodynamic body was conceived and produced at a time when most cars had upright hoods and open, winged fenders. According to RM, it was designed between 1927 and 1932, and was seen on Minnesota roads before the introductions of two cars widely recognized among the earliest aerodynamic sedans, the 1933 Pierce Silver Arrow and the 1934 Chrysler Airflow.

The Streamline was the creation of Fred Bergholt, a designer and manufacturer of sport airplanes who turned his attention to the car after a factory fire. His Madam White cosmetics business funded the sedan’s construction by Edgar Lantz, an experienced metal worker who kept the Ford's chassis and its 65-horsepower flathead V-8 engine that many Long Island car buffs would recognize instantly. The car underwent a complete restoration between 1993 and 2006.

If you’d like to have the Bergholt in your garage, RM estimates that it will take a final bid of $90,000 to $120,000.